


Skyway Avenue

by infernalandmortal, ladygriffyndor



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Art Student Clarke, Clexa, F/F, law student lexa
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-27
Updated: 2015-09-27
Packaged: 2018-04-23 18:06:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4886548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/infernalandmortal/pseuds/infernalandmortal, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladygriffyndor/pseuds/ladygriffyndor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sitting on the bus on her way home was idyllic, Lexa's feet got some rest from walking on her heels all day and she could listen to some music without amything to worry about. She could also look at Clarke, the beautiful Art student that sat across the bus, but well... that's another story.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Skyway Avenue

**Author's Note:**

> We are honestly so excited to finally publish this work :') we were put together by the The 100 Duets and finished just in time for the The 100 ships week, so we decided to go for both. We've been working on this for so long and we couldn't be prouder! Hope you like it (:

The best part of Lexa’s day was always riding the bus back home, and it wasn’t just because she got to take off her heels for a while and to take a break from listening to legal Latin terms. It was more about Clarke Griffin.

Today, as always, the gorgeous art student sat across from her as they rode the 409 across town.  Smart, studious Clarke always leaned against the window with her nose in a book while Lexa watched from across the aisle, which was especially torturous because Clarke didn’t seem to know Lexa existed.  They never talked, only shared cordial smiles across the aisle whenever their eyes met, and the only reason Lexa knew her name was because Clarke always wore her student ID badge on the outside of her jacket. Still, sometimes Lexa daydreamed about scooting over and sitting next to her and actually talking to her... For God’s sake, Lexa. Get your shit together.

She noticed something was off today when Clarke didn’t retrieve a book from her bag, choosing instead to merely lean back and close her eyes.  Lexa couldn’t help but stare ─ she wasn’t looking so it wasn’t really rude, was it?  ─ when the bus rumbled past Clarke’s regular stop and the girl didn’t stir. Lexa began to worry.  

Summoning all her courage, she slipped across the seats, settling next to Clarke.  Her breathing was slow and even; she had fallen asleep.After a couple of deep breaths (and an unhealthy amount of lip-biting), Lexa shook Clarke’s arm gently.  

“Clarke?” She called softly, waiting for the blonde to wake and blink her brilliant blue eyes open.

“I- What?” She was so adorably confused that Lexa’s heart hurt. “I’m sorry.  I must’ve fallen asleep.”

“It’s alright. I think you missed your stop, though.”

Clarke looked out the window for a moment before burying her head in her hands.  “Oh my gosh.” Her voice was thick as she spoke.  Lexa remained still for a moment, unsure of her actions, before gently resting a hand on Clarke’s back, terrified of scaring her off with that bold act of reassurance.

“I understand that this probably isn’t my business,” she began, her voice shaking slightly with nerves, “but it seems like you’re upset about more than just missing your bus stop.”

Clarke’s eyes were red-rimmed when she looked up.  “Yeah,” she nodded, taking a deep breath and leaning her elbows on her knees.  “It’s kind of a long story.” She gave Lexa an apologetic smile.

“I’m willing to listen.  I-if you want, I mean, who doesn’t want to tell a total stranger the story of their life?” Lexa stammered, twisting her hands in her lap.

Clarke gave her a brief odd look before taking another breath, she seemed to weight Lexa’s words before giving in, after all telling her life story to a complete stranger was tempting.  “My mom and I had a big fight last night and it’s really bothering me.  She wants me to transfer to medical school and she said some pretty hurtful things.”  Her breath shuddered from her lungs.  “I can’t stop thinking about it.”

Lexa’s heart ached.  She knew exactly how Clarke felt.  “I’m sorry,” was all she could think of to say.  “I wish I could fix it.” The words tasted as stupid as they probably sounded.

Clarke let out a wry laugh.  “Me too. Anything’s better than following that psycho’s wishes…  I’m sorry; that was pretty mean,” she said, noticing Lexa’s startled expression.

“It’s alright,” Lexa said.  “My mother and I don’t really get along either.”

“Why not?” Clarke asked.  “Please, distract me from the horrors of my own life.”

Now was the moment of truth.  Be cool, Lexa.  

“She didn’t like that I’m gay.”

Clarke’s brow furrowed. “Oh,” was all she said, followed by an, “I’m sorry.”

Lexa forced down a sudden lump in her throat.  “Don’t worry about it.”

It was different, very different, to ride the bus beside Clarke. Sometimes she found herself lifting her eyes to scan the bus and search for her, forgetting completely that she was sitting just next to her. Surreal.

“Guess I’ll just get off in the next stop,” the blonde voiced, breaking the awkward silence that had followed Lexa’s confession. Lexa wanted to ask her if she wanted her to sit somewhere else, if she found it creepy that a complete stranger had called her by her name and knew what her bus stop was. Instead she nodded and remained quiet.

Eventually, the bus stopped in a less than graceful manner and Lexa stood up immediately.

“You know, I fit through here perfectly fine,” Clarke said in a teasing manner standing up herself and walking towards the aisle. “You didn’t have to stand up.”

Lexa chuckled softly and gestured towards the outside with her chin. “This is my stop.”

It was Clarke’s turn to seem embarrassed, it was a nice change for once. But Lexa couldn’t help but notice the delicious way in which her cheeks flushed red.

To prevent herself from doing something stupid, the Law student smiled curtly before walking down the aisle and practically jumping off the bus, forgetting to thank the driver.

Lexa tightened her coat around her as an excuse to hold still her fidgeting fingers before starting to walk towards her building. She was about to cross the street when Clarke’s voice stopped her. It was funny, how she had only heard her voice once and yet she felt as if she could recognize it anywhere. Even if she hadn’t wanted to, she would have turned around.

The blonde walked towards her, her hair flowing in the strong wind of the autumn that was threatening to fall. “I’m sorry… I didn’t even thank you for waking me up. If it wasn’t for you I’d probably still be asleep and on my way to Kentucky.” Lexa laughed and Clarke smiled small. “You like coffee?”

“I do,” Lexa replied almost immediately, with that Clarke’s smile grew.

“Let’s go to that coffee shop over there then, and then maybe I can catch your name.”

 

* * *

 

 

Art school was the obvious choice, while Biology and Science were always her best subjects at school, it was drawing and painting what truly filled Clarke with joy. When it came to selecting a college, liberal arts was the one. And she never once regretted taking that path. Her classes were interesting, she loved the projects she was working on and her campus was beyond idyllic. Abby Griffin was the only person that didn’t see it that way. It was usually that way.

Even when Clarke had managed to obtain one of the most important scholarships in the college, she had voiced her discontent over and over as her daughter went through the admission process, and even when she was preparing to leave she managed to remind Clarke that Art School was nothing but a waste of her time. It only got worse from there. And now, now she had threatened to cut her off, to leave her completely on her own if she didn’t come back home to enroll in Medical School.

She had a very stable job in an art supply store, but that didn’t mean that she didn’t need financial security from her mother, and most importantly, that didn’t mean that she didn’t love her mom. She really did, and losing her over a career choice didn’t seem like a risk worth taking.

Clarke pressed her lips together, her slender fingers toying with the spoon on her mug, the already cold remains of her cappuccino stared at her from the bottom of the almost empty cup. Her other hand rested against the table, her fingers tapping rhythmically on top of a napkin.

Lexa had scribbled her name and number (Clarke had forgotten to charge her phone, because obviously everything had to go wrong today) before giving her a small smile and leaving the coffee shop. She had insisted on paying, and Clarke wasn’t entirely sure on how she felt about that. Did she do it out of pity?

With a sigh, the blonde got to her feet and walked out of the warm shop, shivering once the chilly air outside collided against her. She didn’t live far, but she was not exactly in the mood to walk so she stopped a cab and stared outside the window as she regretted her decision. What if she did get cut off? She couldn’t go around taking cabs just like that anymore. She grimaced.

The screen of her phone came to life as soon as she plugged it in, Clarke kicked off her shoes and shimmied out of her jeans, going through the texts and notifications in her phone. She was almost halfway through the kitchen when she remembered the crumpled napkin on her jeans’ pocket. Before she could give it much more thought, she pulled it out and saved Lexa’s contact. And before she could regret it, she texted her.

“Thank you 4 today, had a nice time :) –Clarke.”

 

* * *

 

‘Nice’ didn’t quite cover it, but still she replied with a simple “Me too, see you soon (:” before going to bed with a smile that didn’t disappear until morning.

After that, nothing was ever the same. Clarke walked into the bus the next day and her clear eyes scanned the seats until she spotted Lexa, who was trying really hard not to look as if she had been looking. In a heartbeat the blonde found her way to the empty seat next to Lexa and without any comment she pulled out a book from her bag and read all the way to her stop.

“See you tomorrow,” she replied before she walked out of the bus. Lexa had never heard more beautiful words in her life.

Clarke kept her promise, and the two girls saw each other the next day, and every day after that. Eventually, Lexa gathered enough courage to ask her about the book she was reading, and she was delighted by the way Clarke’s eyes sparkled when she spoke of Capote and the way his bluntness is quintessential for his writing. Later, when the exams were onto her, Clarke peeked into Lexa’s book ─ crammed with handwritten notes on the margins, highlighted in different colors and with more post-its than anyone would think possible ─  and asked about what had motivated her into becoming a lawyer. Lexa could have sworn that Clarke was fascinated by the way she spoke of the environment and how law was one of the many ways to save it.

The bus talks soon became too long and too interesting to last only the few minutes that took to get from Clarke’s college to her stop, and so she started staying until it was Lexa’s turn to leave the bus and they parted ways in the sidewalks, until they stopped doing that too.

Lexa’s living room soon became the setting of long conversations, of late movie nights, of loud laughing sessions, studying afternoons and some pretty questionable music blasting. It was also the place where they kissed for the first time.

There was something special about the way Clarke laughed, the way her eyes closed and her long eyelashes brushed her rosy cheeks. What had began as a stupid infatuation on the girl that read on her way home had blossomed into Lexa committing the crime of falling in love with her best friend. And so when Clarke laughed at the movie, the brunette couldn’t help but to stare, feeling her heart beat louder with every music crescendo. It was physically impossible to resist the urge of kissing her when she looked up to lock their eyes together, so she didn’t.

Much to Lexa’s surprise, Clarke didn’t push her away nauseated, but the awkwardness of her unmoving lips against hers became too much after a second, so she pulled back slightly her face still very close to Clarke, trying hard to think of a way to pull away completely without looking into her eyes. It was even more surprising when Clarke leaned in, closing the gap between them and locking their lips together.

The kiss was sweet, tender and passionate, just the way Clarke was.

The memory echoed deliciously in Lexa’s head as she went to sleep, and as she texted Clarke the next day. She was practically jumping in excitement when she took her usual seat by the window on the bus. But Clarke didn’t go up on her usual stop, or on any stop. 


End file.
